Three trillion trees live on Earth, but there would be twice as many without humans
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Three trillion trees live on Earth, but there would be twice as many without humans
James Dyke, University of Southampton
Each year, humans reduce the number of trees worldwide by 15 billion. This is one of the startling conclusions of new research published in the journal Nature. The study also estimates the Earth is home to more than three trillion trees – that’s 3,000 billion – so you may think that while 15 billion is a very large number, humans shouldn’t be at risk of making significant changes to global tree cover.
However, the team of 31 international scientists led by Thomas Crowther at Yale University also present evidence that the rise of human civilisation has reduced the numbers of trees on Earth by 46%. In many areas we can’t see the wood because there are no trees. Unlike polar bears, pandas or peregrine falcons, trees and their demise typically do not generate much passion or protest. But the 180,000km2 of tree cover being lost each year represents a serious destabili...
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